Shadow of great britain

No. 36 Lancaster Gate, Bayswater, London's West End at night.

There were no people on the promenade beside Hyde Park. At this time in the past, Arthur and others had already finished dinner and gone back to the house to rest. But today, the seats in the restaurant were crowded with young people from both sides of the English Channel, of different heights, fatness, and thinness. .

The red devil sat on the swing with his legs crossed on the chandelier, looking at it from near to far from his perspective.

Sitting on the right side of the dining table are three Charless. They are Charles Darwin who looks confused, Charles Wheatstone who is embarrassed, and Charles Dickens who is carrying a dark green canvas bag.

The ones sitting on the left side of the dining table should not be underestimated either. They were the Avengers who had just been rejected three times in a row and vowed to take revenge: Alexandre Dumas, the fat Frenchman who scolded the British for being ignorant, was inexplicably brought here. Alfred Tennyson, a Cambridge student, and Mr. Elder Carter, who somehow got in and was so otherworldly that he seemed out of place.

At the head of the table, sitting next to Arthur, was Mr. Benjamin Disraeli, the failed candidate for Parliament who was notorious in the British literary circle and who dreamed of the bankruptcy and liquidation of "Blackwood" every day.

Wheatstone shrank his head and looked back and forth at the group of people, and suddenly stretched out his hand cautiously: "Mr. Hastings, I don't think I have anything to do here, otherwise I'd better leave first. As you know , I’m on a very tight deadline recently and my orders are all urgent.”

When Arthur heard this, he didn't say much. He just pointed at the door and said, "The door is over there."

When Wheatstone heard this, he was stunned for a moment, and then said ecstatically: "I knew you were not completely unreasonable."

He raised his buttocks and was about to leave the table, when he heard another snap, and a flintlock pistol was slapped on the table.

Arthur pointed at the pistol and said, "The bullets are over here."

As soon as he finished speaking, Wheatstone put his buttocks back down again. He looked up to the sky and sighed: "I thought about it again, maybe I'm not in such a hurry."

Tennyson was also shocked when he saw this situation. He didn't know Arthur that deeply, and he didn't know the complicated grudges and resentments between Arthur and Wheatstone.

He glanced at the gun on the table, then at the spacious and bright house, and asked tentatively: "Mr. Hastings, could I take the liberty of asking what you do for a living?"

Unexpectedly, before Arthur could answer, Alexandre Dumas was the first to answer for him. The fat man leaned on the chair and opened his mouth.

"Mr. Hastings has quite a lot of business, including robbery on the high seas, financial insider work, labor fraud, street fighting, monkey breeding, secret imprisonment... Anyway, the people you see here are basically all Mr. Hastings." Persecuted."

Arthur was not angry when he heard this. He just said calmly: "Alexander, now that the Tory cabinet has gone, the Ministry of Internal Affairs' surveillance and protection order against you has also been revoked. If you want to move out, there is no need at all. Apply to me. But before you leave, please remember to pay off your rent."

Alexandre Dumas put one hand on the table, and with the other he pinched a piece of candy from the fruit bowl and threw it into his mouth: "Now there is one more, to suppress French republicanism."

Tennyson was confused by the big hats thrown out by Alexandre Dumas one after another. He asked: "Is Mr. Hastings so bad? I think it comes from the gold medal-winning "Farewell Cambridge" 》 Judging from the above, he should be a quite peaceful and romantic person. By the way, Mr. Hastings, I forgot to ask you last time, which class of Cambridge did you graduate from? I think if you are not a student of Cambridge , I’m afraid I can’t have such strong feelings for Cambridge!”

As soon as Tennyson finished speaking, Elder couldn't sit still anymore. He widened his eyes and asked, "Arthur's poem won the gold medal? And he's from Cambridge? Are you sure you're not joking?"

Seeing that something was wrong, Arthur hurriedly said: "Elder, I know that you, an Oxford graduate, are naturally hostile to Cambridge, but Alfred cannot be blamed for Cambridge's problems. Besides, you and Alfred Don’t we get along well with Charles? Have you forgotten? He also graduated from Cambridge.

You can get along well with Charles from Christ's College, Cambridge, but can't you get along well with Alfred, who graduated from Trinity College, Cambridge? "

When Darwin heard that Tennyson was actually his schoolmate, his attitude became much more intimate. He stretched out his hand and said, "Mr. Tennyson, please don't mind the rudeness of my vulgar friend. You understand, he served in the military." In the Royal Navy, sailors there often use strong words to express friendship."

"Is...is that like this?" Tennyson was doubtful.

But no matter what, with Darwin's explanation, the matter was finally confused.

Taking advantage of the opportunity for the new editor-in-chief Disraeli to review the manuscript, everyone soon started chatting, and the atmosphere in the restaurant gradually became lively.

Among all the talkative people, Wheatstone seemed restless. He gritted his teeth and stood up and came to Arthur's side. He whispered: "Mr. Hastings, why did you bring me here today? Throw away the gun. Aren’t all the things about you already revealed? And if you want to create a literary magazine, what does this have to do with me, a person who runs a musical instrument store?"

When Arthur heard this, he just smiled and pressed him on the chair next to him: "Charles, don't be so anxious. I treat you as a friend sincerely. Think about it carefully. Since you met me, your business has Is it getting bigger and bigger? You must have received a lot of orders for phonographs these days, right?

Even if you make a profit of five pounds from a phonograph, according to its current popularity in London social circles, a few will be able to sell three to five hundred units in the future, which is an income of one to two thousand pounds. If you are willing to work harder, hire a dozen apprentices to work with you, increase production efficiency, and reduce costs, then maybe a slightly wealthier middle-class family will be willing to buy one.

Haven't you discovered that you can rely on this invention of the phonograph for the rest of your life? "

If Arthur had mentioned something else, Wheatstone might not have been willing to accept it, but he did receive a lot of help from Arthur on the invention of the phonograph. And just as Arthur said, he has accumulated more than a hundred gramophone orders these days.

Although Wheatstone is socially fearful, he has recently been considering expanding production capacity.

As for dealing with his apprentices, in the face of the glittering wealth, Whetstone felt that he could still overcome it reluctantly.

After all, the so-called social fear only fears people, and he has nothing to do with money.

When Wheatstone heard this, he just held his chin and asked softly: "Actually... I am also thinking about hiring people. You may not know that since my grandfather's generation, our Wheatstone family has been As a musical instrument maker, my father also ran a musical instrument workshop, so he has some experience in this area.

The gramophone is certainly a good new invention, but if I open a workshop just for it, and if a lot of people buy it just for fun, then when the craze passes, not only will I not be able to make any money, but I will also have to pay for the labor costs. Pay it in. "

Arthur nodded when he heard the words: "You are right, but do you think the gramophone will be a three-minute hot thing? You may not know that I just went to the Royal Society a while ago. According to Mr. Faraday, there are also people inside the Royal Society. When discussing the phonograph, many members directly called it the best invention of the year."

When Wheatstone heard this, he was surprised and said: "This... although I also think that the gramophone is indeed very magical, do those people at the Royal Society also think so?"

"Of course." Arthur's smile was warm and innocent: "Not only that, they also plan to ask you to give an additional lecture, specifically about the problem of the phonograph."

"What did you say?!"

When Wheatstone heard this, he covered his heart and almost fainted: "Oh my God! Can't they come up with some good ideas?"

When the red devil sitting on the chandelier heard this, he couldn't help but raise his eyebrows. He took a bite of the apple and muttered: "Damn it, Arthur, you are really getting better and better at doing this kind of thing."

Arthur glanced at the Red Devil, and immediately put on a gentle voice and comforted: "Mr. Wheatstone, don't always think of the worst in everything. Think carefully about who the audience for the Royal Society's lectures is? They are mainly middle-class people." Women of higher class and above have very strong spending power. As long as you are willing to stand on the podium, you may be able to bring orders for hundreds of units at a time. Isn't this a good thing? "

"But...a good thing is a good thing...but as for the speech..."

When Wheatstone thought about the scene of countless pairs of eyes focusing on him, he felt that the hairs all over his body stood up, and even his calves were trembling.

"That's so damn exciting! Arthur, I know I might make money by doing this, but I'm afraid I'll be scared to death in the lecture, and now that the gun you gave me is gone, I really can't muster the courage .

Sigh... Arthur, if I beg you, please turn down the invitation from the Royal Society for me. As for publicity, I can think of other ways. "

"Think of other ways? Why bother thinking of other ways?" Arthur leaned forward, rested his arms on the table, and crossed his hands to support his chin: "Mr. Wheatstone, do you think I invited you here today just for the sake of it?" Just a simple meal? I want to help you solve your problems! I knew you might not like to promote new products through lectures, so I prepared another plan in advance. "

Arthur patted Disraeli beside him, who was concentrating on reviewing the manuscript, and said: "Benjamin, come on, let's get to know each other. This is the big advertiser of our new magazine - the owner of Wheatstone Musical Instruments, the owner of Gramophone The inventor, Mr. Charles Wheatstone, a leading figure in the field of British acoustics."

When Disraeli heard that the sponsor was actually sitting in front of him, he hurriedly put down the manuscript in his hand, took Whetstone's hand and shook it vigorously: "Oh! It turns out that the big businessman who wants to advertise for a year is you. Is that so? I thought you were here to submit articles as well, how rude."

"A year of advertising?" Wheatstone was dumbfounded when he heard this. He raised his eyes and stared at Arthur beside him: "Mr. Hastings, when will I say..."

But before Wheatstone could finish speaking, Arthur interrupted him: "Actually, our advertisers currently have two candidates, one is your Wheatstone Musical Instruments Store, and the other is the Royal Society. . If you don’t vote, we can only promote the Wheatstone Lectures that will be held regularly every month for the Royal Society.”

When Wheatstone heard this, he almost gritted his teeth. He breathed in hissingly, and his chest heaved up and down. But in the end, the obscenities in his belly turned into a long voice that sounded like he was resigned to his fate: "Really, No, I'll just spend some money. Mr. Hastings, why are you doing this... In fact, even if you don't mention it, I plan to pay you the royalties for the record of "The Bell"."

Wheatstone was so cooperative that Arthur couldn't let him down. He reminded him with a smile.

"Speaking of which, Mr. Wheatstone, you haven't submitted a patent application to the Ministry of the Interior yet, right? With all due respect, the principle of the phonograph is actually not complicated. If others find out about it, I'm afraid it will appear soon. Similar imitations. Perhaps you can establish your own competitive advantage through technological upgrades, but seeking protection from a legal perspective is also essential."

When Wheatstone heard Arthur take the initiative to mention the patent, he couldn't help but sigh: "Of course I know that I need to apply for a patent, but if the patent approval process is completed, it will probably take a year and a half at the earliest. The one I had before The patent for the 10,000-meter phonograph has not even been completed yet, so the phonograph will probably have to be moved further back.”

When Arthur heard this, he couldn't help but asked curiously: "Is patent application so complicated?"

Wheatstone nodded slightly: "Well, according to the process, I first need to prepare an application and attach a patent statement that meets strict specifications and submit it to the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

After review and approval by the Ministry of Internal Affairs, a certificate will be issued by the Secretary of State that the application has been obtained and sent to the Attorney General. A patent report will then be issued to His Majesty the King by the Ministry of Home Affairs or the Chancery.

The King then signed a license requiring the Attorney General to prepare a patent proposal, prepare a proposal and make two backups.

Upon receipt of the Letter of Authorization, the Principal Case will be converted into a 'King's Proposal' and kept in the Seal Office.

One copy was stamped with the seal of the Minister of State and turned into a 'Seal Proposal', the other backup was turned into a 'Royal Seal Proposal', and finally the corresponding 'Royal Seal Proposal' with a patent model was submitted to the House of Lords for submission to the Royal Chancellor. The process is complete only after the judge approves it.

This process is time-consuming, laborious, expensive, and costly. After all, you should know that applying for a patent requires twenty or thirty legal steps. If you want to pass it smoothly, you must not take care of it carefully. "

Just as Wheatstone said this, suddenly, there was a knock on the door.

Alexandre Dumas leaned back on the chair, leaned back, reached out and opened the door handle. He looked out and shouted to Arthur: "Arthur, I'm looking for you."

"Looking for me?"

Arthur stood up and walked to the door. Before he could see the face of the person clearly, he heard an anxious voice.

Charles Field, who had just been promoted to sergeant by Arthur, stood outside the door, holding a brand new document in his hand: "Superintendent Hastings, something bad is going to happen!"

Arthur frowned and asked, "What's wrong?"

Field sighed and put the document in Arthur's hand: "Please take a look."

Arthur took the document, glanced at it, and froze in place.

"Decision of the Metropolitan Police to adjust the terms of reference of Chief Superintendent Arthur Hastings of East London"

He quickly turned to the next page of the document.

Just like the title of the file, the content of the file is not complicated.

Arthur just glanced at it briefly and quickly summarized the main idea of ​​the document - to remove East London District Superintendent Arthur Hastings from all regional responsibilities and change him to be in charge of the Criminal Investigation Department of the Greater London Police Department. people.

Although on the surface it looked like he had been promoted, from the perspective of a senior Scotland Yard police officer, this was completely pushing him to the fringes.

Because as of this Saturday, Arthur had never heard of any specialized criminal investigation department at Scotland Yard.

In other words, it is probably less than a day since this department was established.

Arthur continued to read down, until he turned to the last page of the document, he finally figured out what was going on.

——In order to deal with the increasingly serious vicious crimes, upon the application of Charles Rowan, the Director of the Greater London Police Department, the Ministry of Internal Affairs officially approved the establishment of a specialized criminal investigation department composed of elite police forces with the rank of sergeant or above.

——After the reorganization, the Criminal Investigation Department will be led by Superintendent Arthur Hastings and will be under the jurisdiction of three sergeants: Charles Field, Tony Eckhart, and Tom Flanders, who will be responsible for the detection of major cases. Work.

The red devil stood next to Arthur and just glanced at the document and couldn't help laughing. He grinned widely and dragged his red tongue covered with saliva to yell at Arthur, who had a calm face.

"Oh! Look who the hell is this? My dear Arthur! Have you, like me, the once majestic Duke of Hell, turned into a mere commander? Rowan is really ruthless, starting from above I’ll wipe you clean next time.”

Arthur didn't answer Agares. He just glanced at the Red Devil, then put his hand on Sheriff Field's shoulder and smiled easily: "It's no big deal, Charles, at least the four of us are still together. In life, It’s normal to have ups and downs, it’s quite cold outside, would you like to come in and have a cup of tea?”

Field still felt uneasy after hearing this. He asked for instructions: "Superintendent Hastings, do we need to prepare in advance? To be honest, I just got this document, and many people probably don't know it yet. For example Sheriff Jones in Whitechapel, do we need to go talk to him?"

"Jones?"

When Arthur heard the name, he suddenly raised his head and looked at the stars in the sky outside the door.

He blinked his glowing red eyes and just smiled: "I think he'd better know something."

I’ll start with this update today. Some new information arrived today, and I have to make up for it.